A Modern Amateur's Telescope
Copyright (c) 2006 by David A. Wallace (davewa)
Release 1.1 27-May-2006 1600 UTC
This posable prop (figure) is a Schmitt-Cassegrain telescope on a
tripod-mounted computer-controlled German Equatorial mount. It is
roughly based on the author's own telescope. The figure consists of
38 component parts and is realized by approximately 30,000 polygons.
URL: http://www.wa1gsf.net/downloads/models/telescope_1r0.zip
Changes in version 1.1:
The OBJ and CR2 files were updated in this release to improve the
model for rendering purposes. Poses and texture maps were not
affected by these changes. Specifically:
(1) vertexes split to provide sharp edges in rendering.
(2) material settings of display changed to "glow in the dark".
Files:
:readme's:davewa:telescope:readme.txt -- this file
:Runtime:Geometries:davewa:telescope:telescope.obj
:Runtime:libraries:character:davewa:telescope:telescope.cr2
:Runtime:libraries:character:davewa:telescope:telescope.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Polar Home.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Polar Home.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Park Hand Controller.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Park Hand Controller.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Collapse Tripod.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Collapse Tripod.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Altair.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Altair.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Antares.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Antares.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Arcturus.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Arcturus.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Mizar.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Mizar.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Regulus.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Regulus.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Spica.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Spica.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Vega.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Vega.png
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Zero Cables.pz2
:Runtime:libraries:pose:davewa:telescope:Zero Cables.png
:Runtime:libraries:textures:davewa:telescope:cable_1tex.jpg
:Runtime:libraries:textures:davewa:telescope:cable_2tex.jpg
:Runtime:libraries:textures:davewa:telescope:dec_cable_11tex.jpg
:Runtime:libraries:textures:davewa:telescope:hc_cable_11tex.jpg
:Runtime:libraries:textures:davewa:telescope:hc_tex.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:cable_1.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:cable_2.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:counterweight.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:dec_cable_11.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:dec_drive_a.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:dec_drive_b.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:east_lower_leg.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:east_upper_leg.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:eyepiece_etc.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:finder.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:hand_controller.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:hc_cable_11.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:north_lower_leg.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:north_upper_leg.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:ota.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:ra_drive.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:spreader.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:tripod_head.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:west_lower_leg.jpg
:Runtime:templates:davewa:telescope:west_upper_leg.jpg
Simply unzip this package into your Poser runtime. The figure
will appear in your Figures library under the "davewa:telescope"
folder. Poses will be in your pose library under "davewa:telescope".
This model has been tested in Poser versions 5 and 6. It will
probably work with DAZ|Studio, but I have not tested for that.
Poses:
There are four "utility" poses and seven "object" poses.
The Utility Poses:
Zero Cables - Both cables extend straight out from the RA drive.
A good starting point for making your own pose.
Park Hand Controller - Place the hand controller on the tripod head.
This pose only works right at latitude 42.5 degrees.
Collapse Tripod - Rotate the spreader, fold the legs in and set them
fully collapsed. Hide all other parts. Essentially,
this pose shows the tripod only and in the state it
is supposed to be when you carry it around.
Polar Home - Set the telescope to point due north and park the
hand controller on the tripod head. The latitude is
set to 42.5 degrees. This pose also restores all of
the parts made invisible by "Collapse Tripod" to
visibility again.
The Object Poses:
These poses are for pointing the telescope at the places in the sky
where seven bright stars are at 10 PM local time on July 1st, as seen
by an observer at 42.5 degrees north latitude and 71.5 degrees west
longitude. The object poses leave the hand controller pointing
straight out from the RA drive assembly. The seven stars are:
Altair
Antares
Arcturus
Mizar
Regulus
Spica
Vega
These were chosen because they are scattered all over the sky, giving
you the ability to point the telescope realistically and still have
enough varied positions to allow the rest of your scene to be posed
properly.
Controls:
In addition to the usual control channels, both cables include
"easy-pose" dials at each segment and there are also master easy-pose
dials in the BODY itself. The cables are therefore particularly well
parameterized. They need to be: posing the declination drive cable
so that it connects to the dec drive properly is challenging!
Working from the ground up, here is what you can pose:
The legs can be collapsed or extended;
The spreader rotates;
The right ascension drive tilts (latitude);
The counterweight slides on its shaft;
The mount turns in right ascension;
The mount turns in declination;
The optical tube assembly slides back and forth in its dovetail
bracket;
The finder slides back and forth in its dovetail bracket;
The eyepiece spins in the visual back;
The cables (11 segments each) pose and
The hand controller spins on the end of its cable.
Textures:
The supplied textures provide a "coil-cord" appearance for the cables
and the keyboard and display ledgend for the hand controller. There
are UV maps for all components if you want to make your own textures.
(Seams are not an issue in this figure as the seams between textures
are also seams between the component parts.)
Known issues with release 1.0:
1. The cables are harder to pose than I would like. In particular,
the declination drive cable is a real challenge to get it to attach
to the drive motor box at the proper point.
2. The "pigtails" on the ends of the cables are disproportionately
thin.
3. The tripod head needs to be split into two pieces because when
you select "collapse tripod", more of the mechanism is visible than
the real object has in that state. (I could solve this one with an
alternate geometry rather than re-rigging the figure.)
Planned improvements (no scheduled release date):
1. I plan to issue an update which will correct issue #3.
2. I also plan to add an alternate geometry that allows you to
replace the eyepiece with a camera body. This update will consist of
additional geometry files and a replacement CR2 file.
3. Alternate geometry fixes are possible for the pigtail problem.
4. I may relax some of the control limits to allow a wider range of
motion on the segments of the cables when I update the CR2. This
should make it easier to pose the cables.
License:
This figure is copyrighted by David A. Wallace (known as "davewa").
You are granted a non-exclusive license to obtain a copy of this
package and to use this figure in commercial and non-commercial works.
You may not distribute copies of this package or of any of its
component parts in any form from which any part of the package could
be reconstructed.
If you have questions about this license or about using the package
in some manner that the license does not seem to cover, the author
can be contacted by email: davewa@wa1gsf.net. Technical questions
may also be addressed via the same channel, though the author reserves
the right to limit technical support if it should become burdensome.